Tim Minchin is Too Hot for TV

Official Friend of Skepchick Tim Minchin wrote an awesome Christmastime song for Jonathan Ross, the late-night host who is to the UK what Johnny Carson was to the US (but younger). The song is called Woody Allen Jesus, and it’s a fairly gentle satirical take on what kind of guy Jesus would have been, if he had been.

“Jesus can communicate with the deceased, like Psychic Sally.”

It went really well right up until the point that ITV’s director of television Peter Fincham freaked out and demanded that Tim be edited out of the show. According to Tim, Fincham did this “because he’s scared of the ranty, shit-stirring, right-wing press, and of the small minority of Brits who believe they have a right to go through life protected from anything that challenges them in any way.”

Luckily, we live in the Age of Internetz and Tim got his hands on the footage so you can see it! It’s hilarious. Take a look and give him a thumbs up:

Rebecca leads a team of skeptical female activists at Skepchick.org. She travels around the world delivering entertaining talks on science, atheism, feminism, and skepticism. There is currently an asteroid orbiting the sun with her name on it. You can follow her every fascinating move on Twitter or on Google+.

23 Comments

According to Tim, Fincham did this “because he’s scared of the ranty, shit-stirring, right-wing press, and of the small minority of Brits who believe they have a right to go through life protected from anything that challenges them in any way.”

Sounds about right. Imagine being in a country where that small minority is backed up by a tacit approval through inaction by a majority that may not agree with that minority but can’t quite understand why some people would say mean things about another person’s woobie.
Jesus makes them happy, why you got to go pointing out how he probably wasn’t a Caucasian, or that he was *whisper* a Ja-hew *whisper*, or that he might have been a con man who used magic to get free stuff, or that he may not have existed at all? Why?
Why you gotta be so mean? Why?

Say something stupid and offensive about something people take too seriously today; make them feel the sweet sting of freedom of speech. I’ll start.

*Ahem*

Whoever decided that Paul McCartney was one of the greatest songwriters of all time apparently never heard Wonderful Christmas Time.
Or Uncle Albert.
Or Spies Like Us.

Anyone who wants to argue with me about that can. I won’t argue back ’cause it’s my opinion and I think it’s funny that the man who wrote I Will also churned out a stink pile like Yellow Submarine.

I kind like Uncle Albert, but maybe that was because when I was in High School, I worked part time at a supermarket, and the cop who was usually on night detail (a town police officer earning extra income as a private security guard, but in uniform, with his gun and everything, for our non-usaian viewers) was an older guy named Albert and we used to sing Uncle Albert under our breaths at him at every opportunity.

Tim is amazing. He played this song at Uncaged Monkeys at the Hammersmith Apollo last week and it was delightful and joyful. It’s a shame ITV audiences won’t see it – there surely would have been lots of people watching who won’t see it on YouTube.

My first exposure to Tim Minchin was a really crap cover of White Wine in the Sun that (I think) was posted on Pharyngula, and I thought, this is the guy all these people are always going on about? That song sucks! But then I saw the YouTube vid for Storm, and said, “Damn, I need to revisit this guy.” Now I’m totally in love. He’s got musical talent plus biting wit. I wish he’d lose the guyliner and comb his hair, though. I think he’d look way better.

You know what? English is not my first language, and though I defend myself with text, songs can be a little hard, if anyone has the time and will to transcript the lyrics it would help me not miss 50% of the jokes :)